UNLV getting hot at right time, dismantles Colorado State (again)

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Saturday, Feb. 19, 2022 | 8:15 p.m.

Don’t look now, but there might not be a Mountain West team hotter than UNLV right now.

Kevin Kruger’s squad has won three of their last four contests, including a vicious, 72-51 beatdown of Colorado State on Saturday at the Thomas & Mack Center, and the way they’ve done it — with dominant defense — seems to be sustainable.

UNLV has held opponents to 44, 57 and 51 points in the three wins, and the Scarlet and Gray are suddenly 8-6 in Mountain West play (16-11 overall) and holding steady in fifth place in the conference standings.

Everything seems to be fitting into place at the most important time of the season, just as Kruger and his players expected all along.

After putting together another Mountain West Player of the Year-caliber performance with 20 points and 10 rebounds, Bryce Hamilton didn’t seem surprised at all by UNLV’s late-season surge.

“I feel like we’re clicking at the right time,” Hamilton said. “We kind of knew this was going to happen as we stayed the course. We just can’t get satisfied.”

UNLV should be satisfied with the 40 minutes of basketball they produced on Saturday. The Scarlet and Gray shot 45.1% from the field and built a 35-24 lead at halftime. Hamilton drilled two quick 3-pointers to open the second half, and CSU never got closer than 16 points over the final 19 minutes.

Hamilton and Kruger agreed that health has been the key factor in recent weeks. Junior wing Donovan Williams and junior forward Victor Iwuakor have returned to the rotation, adding to UNLV’s stable of long, versatile defenders.

That has allowed Kruger to rotate freely and explore advantageous matchups. Colorado State came into Saturday’s game ranked No. 8 in the nation in offensive efficiency, but UNLV held the Rams to 34.6% from the field.

That is exactly how Kruger wants to win.

“This is probably the first time we’ve been healthy since maybe June,” Kruger said. “This is what we hoped and planned for our identity to be, which is defense.”

Hamilton, never one to display much emotion off the court, was positively beaming about the current state of the Scarlet and Gray in his postgame press conference.

“We’re a talented group,” Hamilton said. “We also had guys that were out through times of the season. We’re starting to get everybody back. The talent has always been there.”

As the team’s most talented player, Hamilton knew Colorado State would put a target on his chest this time around. Rams coach Niko Medved was not going to allow him to score 42 points, as Hamilton did in the first meeting between the teams, so the senior guard took what the defense gave him.

That led to early passing out of double-teams, and Hamilton finished the game with a team-high four assists.

“I knew Colorado State was going to play me a certain way this time,” he said. “They forced me to be a passer, and I passed to guys like Mike [Nuga], Donovan [Williams], Vic [Iwuakor]. Everybody stepped up and made shots.”

On the other end of the floor, Kruger devised a splendid gameplan to slow down Colorado State leading scorer David Roddy. UNLV rotated several defenders against the burly forward, and together they limited Roddy to 11 points on 4-of-14 shooting.

That’s the second time this season UNLV has shut down Roddy, as they held him to 13 points on 4-of-10 from the field in the first meeting.

“Right now guys are in sync defensively,” Kruger said. “They’re playing so hard. Tonight is kind of the result of that.”

One of the keys to the defense flipping the switch has been input from the players. Kruger said that as the players have gained experience against Mountain West opponents, the coaches have accepted feedback and worked it into the gameplans.

“The guys have taken a little more ownership and had a little more input,” Kruger said. “When they want to put their stamp on something we’re all about it. We’re all for it. We want it to be that way. You can see in the last handful of games especially, they’re pointing, they’re talking, they’re telling each other what’s coming as the ball is coming down the floor.”

That mix of health, talent, players buying in, and trust from the coaching staff has positioned UNLV as a dark-horse Mountain West contender with two weeks left in the regular season.

Hamilton, who entered his name in the NBA Draft before opting to return for his senior season, certainly seems to be enjoying the ride.

“I just wanted to be able to make the NCAA Tournament,” Hamilton said. “I trusted coach Kruger and the players that he recruited to come back here and I feel like they did a very good job. I feel like we’re clicking at the right time.”

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.